Dayton stays hot, knocks off Providence

By JEFF WALLNER SPORTS XCHANGE

10 years ago

Mar 20, 2015; Columbus, OH, USA; Dayton Flyers guard Scoochie Smith (11) brings the ball up court during the first half against the Providence Friars in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Mar 20, 2015; Columbus, OH, USA; Dayton Flyers fans during the first half against the Providence Friars in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Mar 20, 2015; Columbus, OH, USA; Dayton Flyers forward Bobby Wehrli (22) looks to shoot while guarded by Providence Friars guard Jalen Lindsey (21) during the first half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Mar 20, 2015; Columbus, OH, USA; Providence Friars forward Tyler Harris (25) shoots over Dayton Flyers guard Scoochie Smith (11) during the first half in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Greg Bartram-USA TODAY Sports

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Dyshawn Pierre scored 20 points, and senior guard Jordan Sibert added 15, lifting the No. 11 seeded Dayton Flyers to a 66-53 victory over the No. 6 Providence Friars in an NCAA Tournament second-round game on Friday at Nationwide Arena.

The Flyers (27-8) advanced to face No. 3 seed Oklahoma (23-10) in a third-round East Regional game on Sunday.

Dayton played its first-round game Wednesday on its home court at University of Dayton Arena, and it also enjoyed a pro-Flyers crowd on Friday in Columbus, which is barely an hour drive from UD’s campus.

Friars forward LaDontae Henton scored 18 points, guard Jalen Lindsey added 12 and for Providence (22-12), which shot just 39 percent. The Friars attempted just seven free throws to Dayton’s 30, of which the Flyers made 22.

Frustration boiled over for Providence when a technical foul was assessed on the Friars bench with 3:42 left. By then, Dayton had the result well in hand.

The Flyers were 2 of 10 from 3-point range in the first half. But, they equaled that total of made 3s within the first four minutes of the second half.

Consecutive 3-pointers by guard Darrell Davis and Pierre put the Flyers ahead 44-35 with 10:21 left. Providence, meanwhile, was struggling to put the ball in the basket. A 3-pointer by Henton halted an 11-2 Flyers run. But, after the Friars pulled to within three points, Sibert drained a 3-pointer to put Dayton ahead 47-41 with 6:08 left.

Dunn, who came in averaging 15.8 points per game for Providence, picked up his second foul with 17:18 remaining in the first half.

The teams began the game a combined 3 of 23 from the field. The Friars remained cold in the first half and Dayton erupted for a 12-2 run to go ahead 14-7. Both teams began to heat up offensively late in the first half. Henton tied the score 25-25 with a 3-pointer.

Dayton, which led 28-25 at halftime, was 10 of 14 from the free-throw line in the first 20 minutes. The Friars had just one free-throw attempt.

NOTES: Dayton leads the all-time series 6-2. The most recent meeting before Friday was a 68-55 Flyers victory in 1984. … Dayton is making its 16th NCAA Tournament appearance. The Flyers earned the matchup with Providence by defeating Boise State 56-55 in the First Four at University of Dayton Arena, its home court. … Providence made its 17th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and second straight. … Dayton went 19-6 since Dec. 20 without a player taller than 6-foot-6 on the active roster because of injuries and dismissals.